LotR Challenge 15

15 - Favourite Armour

Well, I pre-empted that one, didn't I?

A day later and my favourite armour is still the elven armour worn in Helms Deep :) Since I posted some film pics yesterday, I decided to use some pictures (of both weapons and armour) taken out of Chris Smith's wonderful "Weapons and Warfare"-book. And I'll add a few pieces of text taken out of the same book. So, here we go:

BOW





"The bows of the Galadhrim were probably the most beautiful in all Middle-earth, and certainly the most powerful; they were made from the legendary mallorn trees that grew only in the Golden Wood of Lórien. [...] The seven-foot staff was sealed with mallorn resin and gilded in an elegant embossed pattern of twining golden leaves either side of the leather handgrip; the curved ends of the staff were gilded and bore a spur, but the nock was located a few inches further in. The length of the bow meant that they could never be fully drawn, but it still meant that the Elves would pull the string back beyond the eye rather than up to it: this required an huge amount of individual strength and years of training as the bows would have had a draw of more than 200 pounds.
[...] The pale arrows were almost four feet long, made from unstained ash or occasionally mallorn shoots, with long broad-head tips made of gold that extended into a long sleeve that gave greater stability. The barbs gave the tips the subtle appearance of a mallorn leaf and were used as cutting edges to tear into the enemy: they were lethal against all targets, whether armoured or not. The flights were long white goose or swan feathers, and these were skilfully tied to the shaft in a spiral pattern with a single corkscrewing loop of gold wire. Lórien arrows were the only ones at that time to employ a spiral fletching, so it can be assumed that the Elves were unique in discovering that an arrow fired with a spiralling flight is much more accurate than a normal one.
[...] Like the sword, the design of the quiver differed little to that used almost three thousand years before: it was made of leather, stood roughly half the length of the arrows, and its mouth resembled two overlapping leaves.

SWORD




The sword carried by the Elves of Lórien differed little to that carried by their Noldor kin during the Last Alliance. It can therefore be assumed that the design had already reached its pinnacle in the Second Age, and was merely faithfully reproduced whenever a new sword was required.
[...] As has been said before, the five-foot sword was half blade and half handgrip: the blade was relatively wide given its length, sharp only along the lower edge and with more weight in the top of the blade than near the cutting edge - it was fullered along the entire length of the top part of the blade. The cutting edge curved up to meet the tip, rather than tapering like a normal sword, partly to keep the blade strong along the entire length and partly to extend the cutting edge round.
[...] Haldir's sword is reported to have been similar in shape to Hadhafang, but larger and thicker in the blade. While it bore no runes down the blade it did have an inset, curving flower-bud detail which grew into the fuller.
The scabbard of the Elven swords was the twin of them in terms of beauty: made from the trees of the Golden Wood, it was a deep burnished honey, with gold tengwar patterns etched along its length. It seems to have been attached to the rig that held the quiver as well as to the belt that went around the warrior's waist: like the arrows, it was long and so was worn on the back, being drawn over the shoulder rather than across the body.

ARMOUR





[...] The most significant factor behind [the] changes between Elven armour of the Second and Third Ages was that the armour worn at the Last Alliance was of Noldorin design whereas that worn at Helm's Deep was fashioned by the Sindarin Elves of Lothlórien. As has already been said, Third Age Elven armour reflected the autumnal themes and hues seen in nature - the coppers and browns and rich golds - as opposed to the greens and yellow-golds of spring, or rebirth, found in earlier pieces.
Before marching to Helm's Deep the Elves put on their steel battle armour [...]. Over their normal travelling clothes was worn a hauberk of very fine gold, leaf-shaped mail, with long sleeves that went into a knee-length skirt of metallic silk that had been painstakingly embroidered to give it a pattern of row upon row of tiny leaf-shapes. Both hauberk and skirt gave the appearance of a carpet of leaves fallen from the tree, nearing the end of their natural cycle. Unlike the Noldorin armour, the gold-plated steel cuirass and fauld were separate. The cuirass represented the very pinnacle of armour design: it was like a fan, in that it featured a hinge point at the breastbone that allowed the lames on both sides to move over each other as the soldier drew his arrows and sword, and as he spun and twisted in combat. This hinge point was decorated with a badge that had each Elf's house enamelled on to it. Each lame was slightly curved to represent a fallen leaf, with the veins on the underside of the leaf now exposed; trailing across the metal armour was a fine gold filigree representing both delicate vines and the tengwar of the written language, Quenya. [...] The fauld consisted of eight lames, and like the cuirass these were linked with leather points to move with the soldier as he did; the design again reflected a fallen leaf. The fauld was attached to the body by a leather belt. To further protect the stomach, a leather tunic was worn between the hauberk and the cuirass. Leather was also used for the gloves and bracers, the bracers extending over the hands to protect them from the snap of the bowstring. To protect the outside of the arms a steel vambrace was tied over the bracer, and a steel pauldron was strapped to the cuirass and arm.
The autumnal theme extended to the helmet, in that its latticed steel gave the appearance of a torn leaf. It flexed when it was put on, fitting snugly around the head to ensure it stayed in place during battle; the small curved crest was more decorative than defensive.
The last item of protection was a cloak of deep green silk, its long ties passing over the shoulders and back to be tied around the waist; although of little use against direct attack its movement could distract the eye of an attacker, causing them to miss their aim. The Sindarin refinement of the Noldorin design resulted in an armour that was the most sophisticated ever to be seen in Middle-earth.

LotR Challenge 16

16 - Favourite Female Character



Galadriel - no doubt about that.

"She was one of the greatest of the Eldar in Middle-earth, and surpassed nearly all others in beauty, knowledge, and power. She was also the bearer of Nenya, one of the three Elven rings. Tolkien thought of her, along with Gil-galad the Elven-king, as one of the mightiest and fairest of all the Elves left in Middle-earth."

I love that she's a ruler, a beautiful lady, the bearer of one of the Rings of Power, as well as a warrior.


"Galadriel was born in Valinor during the Years of the Trees, before the First Age had even begun. Much of Galadriel's story is confusing, and there are several distinct tales told about her collected in the Unfinished Tales. According to the older account, used in the published Silmarillion, Galadriel was an eager participant and leader in the rebellion of the Ñoldor and their flight from Valinor due to her desire to one day rule over a patch of Middle-earth herself.

She was eager to see Middle-earth, having heard of it from Fëanor, and wanted to rule a realm of her own. She swore no oaths and was in like mind with Fingon, son of Fingolfin.

However, separated from Fëanor and his kin, she and her people did not take part in the Kinslaying at Alqualondë. They followed Fingolfin instead and crossed the Helcaraxë in the far north.

[...]

She played a relatively insignificant part in the wars of the First Age, as she thought that defeating Morgoth was beyond the power of the Eldar, and when Morgoth was defeated by the coming of the Valar out of the West she, having played no part in the Kinslaying, was offered safe return to Valinor. But Galadriel, being prideful, chose to remain in Middle-earth."

(both quotes taken from the LotR Wikia)

I particularly enjoy her backstory and the way the last quoted sentence explains her cryptic remark "I pass the test" in FotR after Frodo offered to give her the ring.

Come to think of it, while I like Galadriel in the books/movies, it's the parts that are just alluded to or can be found in the appendices or other Tolkien books that make her really interesting. She's a fierce and strong lady that doesn't rely on others to achieve her goals - and that in a universe that has oftentimes be criticised for being anti-female and patriarchal.
And judging by her part in the rebellion as well as in the defeat of Dol Guldur, she's a damn fine fighter as well.

Galadriel wonderful, inspiring, well-rounded female character that can and should serve as a model for strong girls and woman all around the world.